MUSIC REVIEW: JONATHAN DAVIS, with SHANKAR and GODHEAD At Berklee Performance Center, Monday night. But Davis might want to consider why the theater was barely one-third full. The attending Korn-y kids devoured every last kernel of his morbid drivel. But a cover of New Order’s “Blue Monday” fell limp and Duran Duran’s “The Chauffeur” was only marginally less lame.Īll told, Davis looked pretty damn silly up there exorcisingdemons in a pinstripe suit, writhing within the confines of a red velvet throne, a champagne chiller of Red Bull at his side. The group will issue a live 'Mtv Unplugged' LP through Virgin Records on Monday, February 19 in the. A slightly reworded cover of Neil Diamond’s “Love on the Rocks” revealed a crude sense of humor. Korn will release its first-ever acoustic album early next year, according to .uk.
A rare moment of positive energy, “Hold On,” packed satisfying punch with shifty timing. Former Berklee student Shane Gibson added fancy guitar here and there.ĭavis occasionally managed to transcend his own shtick. Mosley’s instrument was cleverly channeled through multiple pedals for an optimum range of effects. There were some decent performances: The rhythm section of percussionist/drummer Michael Jochum and upright bassist Miles Mosley worked hard. A highly respected, Grammy-winning Indian musician, Shankar also delivered a ridiculous pop-leaning opening set: His vocals were so processed that he sounded like a robot attempting to imitate Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson. Shankar’s double-necked violin provided stereotypical Bollywood screech. Within Korn, it works the music’s ferocity keeps his angst sounding genuine.īut Monday’s show was just unplugged enough to transform his never-ending supply of four-minute meltdowns into contrived melodrama – surely not the intended effect. The rough terrain of childhood molestation, abuse and self-loathing is the subtext running through all of his songwriting. It’s no secret that Davis has had enormous personal struggles.
Reclaiming those songs, as well as dusting off some covers and Korn rarities, is apparently the impetus for Davis’ unplugged solo tour, which slithered onto the Berklee Performance Center stage on Monday.
Contractual obligations may have kept Korn frontman Jonathan Davis’ voice off 2002’s “Queen of the Damned” soundtrack, but it’s still his score.ĭavis’ tortured howl seemed the perfect mouthpiece for the songs of the vampire Lestat, who, within the film’s plotline, finds himself fronting a rock band in 1984.